Ismar Gomes - Biography

Award winning cellist, Ismar Gomes, performs throughout the US and Europe as soloist, recitalist and chamber musician. Hailed for his “impressive virtuosity, energy, and a handsome tonal range” (Berkshire Review), Mr. Gomes has established himself as a captivating young artist with a commanding voice and a growing reputation for delivering exciting concerts wherever he performs.

With an especially wide scope of musical interests, Mr. Gomes’ busy international performance schedule includes dozens of solo and duo recitals, concerto performances, chamber music, early music and new music. His versatility and flexibility as a cellist, along with his communicative abilities have allowed him to develop the distinctive and personal performance style in which he engages his audiences.

Most recently, Mr. Gomes has appeared at the Walla Walla Chamber Music Festival, Evolution Contemporary Music Series, Le Petit Salon, Early Music at St. Mark’s, and Old Town Hall Concerts, among numerous other Series and Festivals. Those performances include many appearances with his Duo partner, pianist Wan-Chi Su, with whom he has been touring for several seasons. In addition to his regular orchestral and chamber music work, the coming season will find Mr. Gomes performing many solo recitals, concertos by Gulda and Vivaldi, embarking on a national recital tour with his Duo, a teaching and chamber music residency at Merkin Hall in New York, as well as a recording engagement with the Harlem Quartet and Pulitzer-Prize winning composer, David Lang.

Mr. Gomes attended the Peabody Conservatory where he studied with Alison Wells and Amit Peled. Prior to his time at Peabody, Mr. Gomes was a student of Marc Johnson, long time cellist of the Vermeer Quartet. Further studies were undertaken with Clive Greensmith and most recently, Colin Carr under whose tutelage Mr. Gomes is pursuing Doctoral studies at Stony Brook University. Mr. Gomes has appeared in Masterclasses for eminent cellists including Steven Doane, Janos Starker and Steven Isserlis, in addition to being mentored in chamber music by members of the Vermeer, Jerusalem, Brentano, Juilliard, Tokyo and Emerson String Quartets.